Without You
by The Yuri Fangirl
Summary: Mizore very suddenly decides to leave Yokai Academy, but Kurumu is surprisingly adamant about her leaving... What could be the reason?


"Without You"

Mizore's feet stepped rhythmically underneath her, carrying her body down the gravestone-lined road to the bus stop while her mind wandered miles away. Images of her friends flashed through her head: Tsukune grinning as he said good morning, Moka offering homework help, Yukari waving her wand to punish Gin for peeping at girls, and Kurumu…just being Kurumu. Her thoughts lingered over the blue-haired girl for an unnaturally long time, cancelling out the rest of her friends.

"All this time…" Mizore thought to herself, "All I ever wanted was to be a part of something, to have friends that understood me. But the one person I wanted to know me the most…doesn't really know me at all."

Like a daydream out of Mizore's head, that particular one person suddenly dropped from the trees and landed on the path in front of her. Kurumu folded in her succubus wings and straightened up, glaring daggers at the snow woman.

"Just where do you think you're going?" she demanded.

Mizore was slightly taken aback by the harshness in her voice, but she met her gaze steadily.

"I'm leaving. Leaving Yokai Academy," she answered coolly, continuing on her way. Kurumu stubbornly moved to block her path.

"Hold it right there, we are not done yet. What reason do you have to leave the school?" Kurumu glowered fiercely at Mizore, but Mizore wouldn't meet her eyes now. She stared down at the ground, suddenly very interested in the rocks and plants beneath her feet.

"Things aren't going well. It's a personal thing. You wouldn't understand," she sidestepped Kurumu and continued to make her way down the road. Kurumu didn't move to stop her this time. Instead, she followed behind her purple-haired friend.

"How _could_ I understand?" the succubus yelled. "You haven't said anything to anyone! For the past month you've just been off by yourself, ignoring us when we try to talk to you! We're your friends, Mizore, how could you not trust us to help you?"

The yuki-onna did not falter. Her feet kept up their rhythmic motion, bringing her closer and closer to the bus stop.

"I mean it Kurumu. None of you would understand, even if I did try to say something," she said with finality.

The succubus stopped following behind, and the distance between the girls grew larger and larger.

"So that's it, then?" Kurumu called after her. "You just leave us all behind because of some stupid, mysterious reason that none of us would understand? After everything that we've been through together, you would just give it all up? What about Tsukune, Moka, and Yukari? What about me?"

Mizore stopped in her tracks. Something about the way Kurumu phrased that caught her attention.

"You?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper. She slowly turned to face Kurumu. "What do you—"

Mizore's words stuck in her throat as she caught sight of Kurumu's face. Her expression was still furrowed into an angry glare, but her eyes shimmered and glistened with tears that threatened to spill down her face.

"Kurumu…" Mizore started, unsure of how to react. Kurumu's steady gaze did not waver.

"What am I supposed to do if I can't see you everyday?" the succubus questioned. "After all this time, you would just pack up and leave? Without giving me a chance to say goodbye? ….I thought I meant more to you than that."

Mizore's eyes widened. She couldn't leave Yokai Academy knowing that Kurumu was under the wrong impression. She took a few steps closer to her.

"No, Kurumu, you mean so much to me, but—"

"How can I go on knowing I'll never see your eyes again?" Kurumu interrupted, also moving closer to Mizore. "Going through each day without being able to see your icy blue eyes sparkle…it's impossible to imagine."

The Ice Queen desperately fought to form words, but could not manage a decent response.

"I—"

"If I have to go through the rest of my life without seeing your hair," Kurumu interrupted again, taking more steps towards Mizore, "without watching your purple spikes dance and play in the wind…"

Mizore was completely speechless. Everyday, she imagined conversations like this between the two of them, but now that she was finally in one, she had no clue what to do.

Only four feet separated the succubus and the snow woman, and Kurumu took the liberty of closing the gap. The girls were now just inches apart. Mizore watched as the anger drained from Kurumu's wet eyes and sad desperation took over, causing the first tear to run down her cheek.

"How do I live without you?" she questioned quietly.

Mizore's heart fell at the pain in her voice. She hadn't in her wildest dreams imagined that Kurumu had felt this way; she never showed the smallest sign.

"Don't let me live without you, Mizore…" Kurumu was barely audible; calling her voice a whisper was an exaggeration.

The yuki-onna couldn't promise anything until she had a definitive answer to the question she was about to ask. No head games, no subtext, just a straight yes or no answer.

"….Do you love me?" Mizore asked, her voice also practically inaudible.

"Of course. You're one of my best friends," Kurumu answered too quickly. Mizore shook her head slowly.

"That's not what I mean, and you know it."

Kurumu's gaze finally broke, and she shyly looked down at the ground beneath her feet.

"…Yes Mizore, I love you…"

The snow woman's heart rose again, and a warmness grew from it and spread throughout her whole body at the sound of Kurumu's words.

"Good…because I love you too," she confessed.

The blue-haired girl's eyes widened, and she wiped her tears away. Overcome with relief, she threw herself at Mizore and trapped her in a hug. Mizore could hardly believe it. She had spent so much time keeping her feelings about Kurumu hidden from everyone, but Kurumu had been feeling the same way. Mizore hugged the girl she loved back, committing everything about the moment to memory.

"Does this mean that you'll stay?" Kurumu asked, her face buried in Mizore's hair.

"I…I was only leaving because I thought we didn't have a chance together…"

Kurumu pulled away from Mizore, only to lean in again and kiss the snow woman on her lips. Mizore's head immediately started to swim, overwhelmed with all the dreams of hers that had finally come true. If it were possible for a yuki-onna to melt, she would have done so right there. It wasn't until Kurumu's soft lips broke away that Mizore reminded herself that she needed to breathe. Her entire body was filled with an electric warmth she'd never felt before, and again she hoped that the term "snow woman" wasn't as literal as it sounded.

"Wrong as usual, Mizore," Kurumu mocked with a smile. "When will you ever learn?"

Mizore responded by lightly brushing her nose against her love's.

"Care to teach me?"

Kurumu's answer was to return her lips right up to Mizore's, teasing and taunting her.

"Gladly."


End file.
